Desperado - 4K Remaster Blu-Ray Review

Director Robert Rodriguez shot to fame for his very low-budget action film El Mariachi in 1992 which he made for less than $8000.

Columbia then allowed the director to make a bigger-budget film Desperado which he directed, wrote, co-produced and edited. It was a big hit and made a star out of the two leads Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek.

A hyper-violent tale of revenge starring Antonio Banderas as the mysterious stranger, Mariachi. He carries a guitar case full of weapons, which he plans to use to avenge the death of his girlfriend.

Aided by his best friend and a beautiful bookstore owner, he hunts down the last of the druglords, dispensing his brand of justice to anyone who gets in the way.

Stylish, violent and very cool, Desperado stands up beautifully today as a slick action movie with great dialogue and performances. Some great cameos are also in the film from the likes of Steve Buscemi, Danny Trejo and Quentin Tarantino.

The director at the time was heavily influenced by Hong Kong filmmaker John Woo and you can see it in the shootout scenes and slow-motion shots. Also, the soundtrack is a cracker from Los Lobos which adds to the atmosphere.

This Blu-ray release from Arrow is from a new 4K remaster and it looks fantastic. The film grain is intact but colours pop and black levels are solid. Audio is a robust DTS MA 5.1 mix and really packs a punch.

It is part of the Mexican Trilogy Box Set which includes El Mariachi and Once Upon a Time in Mexico, the sequel.

The reason you have a 4K UHD disc of Desperado only is that the other 2 films were shot 2k resolution only so UHD disc would not see any benefit or upgrade in quality.

The box set includes –

High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentations of all three films
4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of Desperado
Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Carlos Aguilar and Nicholas Clement
Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Paul Shipper
Double-sided posters featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Paul Shipper
Collectable poster featuring Robert Rodriguez’s original poster concept for El Mariachi

DISC 1 – EL MARIACHI (BLU-RAY)

Original uncompressed Latin-American Spanish stereo audio, plus an English dub in lossless stereo
Optional English subtitles, plus English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Commentary by writer-director Robert Rodriguez
Big Vision Low Budget, a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez
The Original Mariachi, a newly filmed interview with producer/star Carlos Gallardo
The Music of ‘El Mariachi’, a newly produced featurette on the music in the film, featuring interviews with composers Eric Guthrie, Chris Knudson, Alvaro Rodriguez and Marc Trujillo
Ten Minute Film School, an archive featurette produced and narrated by Rodriguez
Bedhead, a 1991 short film by Rodriguez
Theatrical trailer and TV spot

DISCS 2 & 3 – DESPERADO ( BLU-RAY / 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)

New 4K restoration from the original camera negative by Sony Pictures
Original uncompressed stereo audio and DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Audio commentary by writer-director Robert Rodriguez
Lean and Mean, a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez
Shoot Like Crazy, a newly filmed interview with producer Bill Borden
Kill Count, a newly filmed interview with stunt coordinator Steve Davison
Lock and Load, a newly filmed interview with special effects coordinator Bob Shelley
Game Changer, a newly filmed appreciation by filmmaker Gareth Evans (The Raid)
Ten More Minutes: Anatomy of a Shootout, an archive featurette narrated by Rodriguez
Textless opening (“Morena de mi Corazón”)
Theatrical trailers

DISC 4 – ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO (BLU-RAY)

Original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Commentary by writer-director Robert Rodriguez
The Revolution Will Be Digitized, a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez
Troublemaking, a newly filmed interview with visual effects editor Ethan Maniquis
Eight deleted scenes, with optional commentary by Rodriguez
Ten Minute Flick School, an archive featurette narrated by Rodriguez
Inside Troublemaker Studios, an archive featurette on Rodriguez’s studio in Austin
Ten Minute Cooking School, an archive featurette in which Rodriguez shows you how to cook Puerco Pibil
The film is Dead: An Evening with Robert Rodriguez, a presentation by the director given in 2003
The Anti-Hero’s Journey, an archive featurette on the arc of the Mariachi
The Good, the Bad and the Bloody: Inside KNB FX, an archive featurette on the film’s special effects
Theatrical trailers